A Fabulous Northeast Bridal Magazine: La Bella Bride

This was the website for La Bella Bride magazine, a fabulous Northeast bridal magazine that also produced three bridal events in Newport, Providence and Boston and its Blogazine. Started in 2008, the magazine was such a great idea while it lasted. It was so simple to order and read online. Later the site turned into a Blogazine. We will miss you, La Bella Bride.The content below is from the site's 2008-2011 archived Blogazine pages.

We want our readers to feel confident and joyful with their decision to marry, not stressed and overwhelmed. We believe our readers will relate to the content within our pages and feel successful with their choices by knowing they have found a resource which respects and honors their individuality and intelligence.

La Bella Bride Magazine has gained admiration from both readers and industry professionals for its ability to bring interesting information, exciting versatility, easy, elegant style and impressive designs to the forefront.

A wedding is a celebration of love, and that is something that will never change. What has changed, however, is the desire to host a wedding within the context of a complete lifestyle and attitude. La Bella Bride is a publication, which does embrace every aspect of a fulfilling life.

For the Bride

Our For the Bride section collects vendor profiles to preview some of the most talented vendors and amazing venues from around the country in our Little White Book Vendor Directories, as well as tabs for fashion, listing some of La Bella’s designer picks for gowns and wedding party attire.

Don’t forget to browse our Little White Book Vendor Directories – categorized by state – to find wedding professionals in your area or the area of your destination wedding. For more information on how to become part of our Vendor Directory, please contact Katina [at] LaBellaBrideMagazine.com.

POSTS

Shelby and Matt’s time has come!

Kim and Patrick at the ICA Boston

J. and Beth are Wed

The Quest for an Affordable and Personal Wedding: Part I

Contemporary Catering from Table of Contents

Events by Sharon’s Daughter Tablescape!

Beautiful Butterfly Tablescape!

Raina Dawn redefines elegance with this tablescape!

Dana Markos and the Return of Spring!

Meet Kane and Chrissy!

Shelby and Matt’s time has come!

Published:February 22, 2011

Shelby Rutledge and Matt Marocco would describe themselves as a pretty low key couple, which made the simple proposal everything Shelby could have wanted. “I’m personally not into big romantic gestures, so the way he proposed was perfect,” she says. “He came home after playing basketball and I was at the computer. He came into the room and asked me to turn around. When I swiveled my chair to face him, he got down on one knee, which was no easy feat considering he’d just played in a pretty physical game. He told me he’d loved me for a long time and wanted to know if I would spend the rest of my life with him. Of course I said ‘Yes!’ and then I asked him to please stand up because he looked like he was in pain!”

With plans to make it an outdoor summer wedding, Shelby knew she wanted a bright and cheery feeling to the affair, so she chose a color scheme of pink, orange and yellow. It was an appropriate pick for the fun-loving couple. The ceremony and reception were both held at the home of Michael Marocco (Matt’s uncle). “He has a beautiful home in Redding, Connecticut,” says Shelby. “It was the perfect setting.”

Shelby’s two attendants wore Lazaro chiffon halter dresses in melon, sticking with the light and airy feel of the outdoor ceremony, which was performed in Michael’s garden. One hundred guests watched as the bride’s father walked her down the aisle to the tune of Somewhere Over the Rainbow. “I liked it so much better than the traditional wedding march,” says Shelby.

Following the ceremony, a cocktail hour was held around the pool where guests sipped watermelon martinis and champagne. After enjoying drinks and a variety of appetizers like mini cheeseburgers, stuffed mushrooms and crab cakes, everyone moved into a nearby tent for the reception. The tent was adorned with hanging raspberry and orange colored Chinese lanterns, while raspberry hued linens with a sheer shimmery ivory overlay brightened the tables. The dinner menu included citrus boneless chicken with ranch drizzle, a rubbed sirloin and wood grilled vegetables, among many other choices. “We wanted to have a buffet style dinner because we wanted people to be up and moving,” says Shelby. “We had guests from all over the country at the wedding and we wanted everyone to meet each other.”

For dessert, the couple chose a cupcake tower instead of the traditional wedding cake. “We selected two different flavors for the cupcakes—lemon cake with a raspberry frosting and a red velvet cake with a traditional butter cream frosting,” notes Shelby. “The red velvet cupcakes were wrapped with a wide pale yellow ribbon with a thin orange ribbon over it and the lemon cupcakes were wrapped with a wide yellow ribbon with a thin pink ribbon over that. It was all delicious and so pretty!”

After a perfect wedding and reception, the couple honeymooned in St. Lucia at the Sandals Regency for nine days, and then returned to their home in North Providence, Rhode Island. Looking back, Shelby says the wedding was everything she could have wanted. “But I would have to say the best part of the entire day was being able to share it with all the people we love most,” she says. “We had guests from California, Colorado, New York, New Jersey, Massachusetts and Rhode Island in attendance and the fact that they were willing to travel such distances to share the day with us was truly wonderful.”

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Kim and Patrick at the ICA Boston

Published:November 12, 2010

The ICA was a perfect setting for this non-traditional wedding. The space was transformed with in house lighting and the tremendous work by the team at Winstons. Long, Tuscan style tables with multiple composite style, all white arrangements decorated the space. Each item from the linens to the flatware were painstakingly selected by the bride and her mother, who is an interior designer. An unusual color palette of orange, gray and blue were carried throughout the night and the different spaces used. The ceremony was held outside on the waterfront under a chuppah.

Cocktail hour with lots of lounge furniture and bright arrangements preceded dinner in the waterfront space. Dinner and toasts took place upstairs, while the traditional first dance, horah and incredible all blue dessert buffet were saved for the downstairs space. Guests ended the night dancing away to a band from Philadelphia, sampling sweets, gelato and a very non traditional wedding cake – which mirrored the “window like” mirrors on display at the ICA (can be seen in the photo of the band) on various dessert displays. Unique from start to finish!

J. and Beth are Wed

Published:September 13, 2010

This story is a continuation of “The Quest for an Affordable and Personal Wedding“.

The best laid plans may go awry, but that doesn’t mean it’s not a good time.

For all our worries, June 12, 2010, turned out fantastic, and went by too quick. There was some last minute stress, for sure, as the weather was not cooperating, and therefore, we had to cancel the use of the outdoor space at Slater Mill. But, as it turned out, having everything in one place was great. The ceremony was short and sweet, so no time was lost transitioning from one location to another. We exchanged vows, kissed, exited down the aisle and into the “party” area of the Pawtucket Armory and started a reception line, which the guests really liked. Then the party really got started.

Jack and Deb Falvey at Jack Falvey Associates were there before noon to start lighting the massive drill hall. They did a fabulous job, and even helped set up a last-minute stage and trellis for the ceremony. The simple white “frame” of the trellis set the scene for the event, and coordinated well with our simple black, white and teal color scheme.Warm lights were set on the floor and bounced off the dramatic ceiling and a long 8′ tall divider of blue fabric was set up to divide the space for its two functions, and also to make it cozier, as the hall was much bigger than we needed. Jack and Deb set up a lounge area with couches in one corner, while the bar and DJ was set up in the other. More accent lighting was added around the perimeters and dance floor to make the space feel more like an exclusive dance club, which it quickly turned into.

Bridemaids wore black dresses of the same fabric (J. Crew) and picked their own most flattering cut (this also meant that they have a greater possibility of wearing them again). Groomsmen wore black suits and shoes – whatever they had in their closet that fit them well – and the groom got them all matching ties. Flowers were prepared by the mother of a friend and came out great. Simple again was best here, with yellow and orange roses and bits of blue and green accents.

As soon as the reception line died down, Glenn Place and his catering team over at Tom’s Market started passing hors d’oeuvres and they continued for the next two hours. We selected an assortment of recognizable favorites – like stuffed mushrooms , spanikopita, grilled pizzas and mini cheeseburgers with bourbon ketchup – to an array of more adventurous finger food, such as California rolls, seared ahi tuna, mini Indian pakoras, crab cakes and pulled pork topped with cole slaw served in phyllo pastry shells. The guests loved the selections, and we anticipated for a heavy serving of about 12 to 15 pieces per person, which filled everyone as much as a sit down dinner would have… but with more variety, and in a more social atmosphere.

Deb at The Pour People provided the bar, and we decided to do a limited one hour open cocktail hour for the guests. This worked out well and the prices were all fixed a head of time. We’ve been to other weddings with open bars all night, and not only can it get expensive, but sometimes it encourages guests to drink more than they ought to. With our scenario, we felt like everyone was having fun without drinking too heavily too quickly.

For dessert, Tom’s Market provided coffee service and The Cupcakerie provided three varieties of delicious gourmet cupcakes. We chose our flavors and provided almost twice as many cupcakes as we had guests. The folks at The Cupcakerie provided a beautiful display stand and made the dessert table really shine. towards the end of the night, Tom’s Market staff even helped pass them around the crowd to make sure everyone got one.

Our DJ was a friend of ours who plays in bands and DJs local night spots around Providence. His style is mostly 50s and 60s surf rock, “tiki” rock, Rock-a-billy and vintage classics, which made for a great party atmosphere. We didn’t have to worry about watching our grandma dancing to The Humpty Dance… instead, young and old got up and boogied to the quick beats and fun sounds of The Colonel. He was also a great personal choice for us, as when Beth and I were dating, we frequently one of his nights at a bar downtown that has since closed. It was like we re-created a moment during our courtship.

A friend of ours, Pete Reinhard, took the photos, which also worked out great. He’s a pro, and since he knew everyone in the hall, he blended in perfectly and captured some great shots. A photo booth from RI Photobooths in the corner also added to the party atmosphere, and there was a line for it all night. it was a little on the expensive side, but it was important to us, as it was also something from our dating past.

All in all, we’re so glad for our family and friends… they helped make the night lots of fun. Dancing, sing-a-longs, congo lines, photo booth photos… it was really a great time and it came together well. We were lucky to be able to make all the personal choices that we wanted, and even though we went a little over our initial budget, it was all worth it. Thanks to everyone involved, and we hope these ideas might help you plan your special day.

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Confessions of a Former Bridal Magazine Junkie

I love perusing bridal magazines. I was particularly taken by the 2011 issues of La Bella Bride with the fabulous pics by Sara Zarrella Photography. It was a disappointment when the magazine disappeared, although there will always be more bridal magazines being published. But I used many of my religiously saved back issues of La Bella Bride when I was planning my own 2015 Rhode Island summer wedding. Times change, move to NYC, twins, nanny, husband, house, animals, oh and job. Now I spend my "free" time doing searches online for kids cotton clothing, best dog beds, food delivery, rug cleaning, and free estimate for blind and curtains cleaning - my most recent search. Actually I did luck out finding a really decent local rug cleaning /repair company and a great drapery cleaning company. I didn't realize the extra dirt that impacts one's rugs and curtains ( in my case, roman shades) when you live in a big urban city on a low floor in a high rise. I now know you can't just throw your roman shades into the clothes washer among other disasters, but I'm learning. Don't have time for hours looking through bridal magazines, now it's child rearing magazines.